A Conversation for Gustav Mahler: The Second Symphony

Is this Symphony brilliant, or is this Symphony brilliant?

Post 1

Conceited Little Megapuppy - Inbound traveller and Unas Matriarch

I just love this work. It was my first introduction to Gustav Mahler, and I have been hooked ever since.

The moment when he brings in the choir - total silence before 'Aufersteh'n' whispers out over the auditorium - has to rank amongst one of the finest moments in music (particularly as it served as such a fantastic smiley - nahnah to the critics when the audience was so wowed by it), though I recall reading somewhere that he could never decide which was the best moment to get the choir to their feet for the final chorus (because, lets face it, they can be incredibly noisy when they do). Sometimes he'd leave it right up to the final rendition of the 'Aufersteh'n, other times it would be a bit earlier.

The performance I took part in had a slightly different approach. For reasons known only to himself, our conductor decided to stand the choir before their *first* entry - and thus created the following effect:

smiley - musicalnoteflute/picc die away...smiley - musicalnote

RUMBLE/RUMBLE/CLATTER/BANG/THUMP/RUMBLE/RUMBLE (it was a big choir...)

smiley - musicalnote"Aufersteh'n. Ja Aufersteh'n..."smiley - musicalnote

Not, I assume, what Herr Mahler had in mind for the moment of resurrection!

smiley - dog


Is this Symphony brilliant, or is this Symphony brilliant?

Post 2

h5ringer

Sounds as though it should have been followed by:

RUMBLE/RUMBLE/CLATTER/BANG/THUMP/RUMBLE/RUMBLE (sound of conductor's ears being bashed)!


Is this Symphony brilliant, or is this Symphony brilliant?

Post 3

Conceited Little Megapuppy - Inbound traveller and Unas Matriarch

I wish someone had! Unfortunately, it has to be said that the conductor was - well - not very good. Actually - I'll be honest here - he was completely devoid of talent with a baton. A nice man if you happened to be in his 'good books', but he really shouldn't have been allowed anywhere near a rostrum. He killed the atmosphere absolutely stone dead - and after all that care and attention spent by the flute and picc in building it, too. smiley - cross

I did the Symphony again a few years ago where the conductor (a different one!) decided to go all arty and had the lights dimmed while the flute and picc were doing the 'Bird of death' bit (they had lamps on their stands). The choir then sang the 'Aufersteh'n' bit out of the darkness while the lights were slowly brought back up. Naff, but rather effective at the time!

He had got the choir to sort of 'shift up' onto the tops of the 'tip up' seats during the noisy beginning of the movement, so that - when they actually did stand up - they would do so without making a godawful racket. Much wiser.


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